Mass Effect
by Foxhood Robincloud
Summary: When passion swells inside, how do you find release? And does love truly overcome all, including jealousy, language barriers and death? Then again... what's love, anyway.
1. Tails

A park bench is a great place to cry.

On a bench atop a hill overlooking the river, Antoine watches Tails sob.

In the darkness, Antoine can just barely make out the contour of his friend's head. Subdued orange-yellow fur, broken by a lighter patch of cream at the muzzle and cheeks.

"I hate love," Tails cries, voice thin and quivering. His muzzle is bowed into his hands, elbows nestled against his knees.

"I just keep trying, you know? But love just stopped making sense to me a long, long time ago."

The autumn chill envelops Antoine. The night has taken on a surreal quality. Their earlier stroll had cumulated in this current unexpected state of affairs. And at this rate, he'll be late returning home.

"Sometimes, I wonder where my life is headed, and all I see is this black hole of nothing." Tails pauses, his shoulders shaking as he sobs. Then he wipes his eyes. There is silence as he does so.

Beyond Tails' head is the lake. In the evening, its waters form a mass of pure ebony. Come morning, the lake takes on a hue of green-tainted gray. The opaque depths do not reflect the sun. No ripples break its monotonous surface. The fish have long died, suffocated by years of progressive eutrophication. Mobian pollution is at cause.

The park itself is artificial. The lake had been dug out to make the hill. On the surface of the earth, genetically modified grass abounds, engineered to withstand the toxins in the ground which natural greens fail to tolerate.

Such is the world they saved.

"Ant, everyone else I know is falling in love or getting married. First, Sonic got with Amy. Then, it was Knuckles and Blaze, followed by Shadow and Silver. As for you and Bunnie... well, I guess you two are about to marry too."

Antoine draws in a deep breath. The air, thick with silent toxins, settles slowly in his lungs. He smiles, in the general direction of Tails' head, the edge of the park bench and the lake. Yes, his own sweet Bunnie was at home, awaiting him. One of these days, he would get down on one knee, clasp her tender paw in his. With an infinitely tender smile, he'd gaze into her brilliant emerald eyes, other hand revealing the box with the glittering gold ring that he'd so lovingly chosen. Then, Bunnie would lift her remaining paw to her mouth, the cyborg one, and gasp. Oh, how beautiful she would look as she did so…

"And you know what I hate about it all? I can't even hang out much with you guys anymore, because you're always busy."

"...Eez okay." The words, pronounced after a quiet moment, are addressed to the lake. "Eez... not your fault."

Tails shakes his head, two slow times to the left and once the right.

"It's not okay, Ant. You don't understand. What it means to be... alone."

Another moment drags on. The coyote's fingers tap once, twice, three times against the bench. He tries again.

"Do not worry, mon ami. You will also find zee love. You will have a buteeful wife one day also, non?"

"Partner," Tails corrects.

"Partner," Antoine repeats.

"Listen," Tails says. "I know you might not understand. But it's hard, sometimes, when no one... accepts your sexuality for what it is."

Antoine nods.

"For the longest time, I had this huge crush on Sonic. And when he found out, he just got all strange about it. And after he got together with Amy, whenever we were together, he'd always get all touchy with her. Like he was proving some sort of point. But you know what?"

Antoine nods.

"After a while, I started wondering why in the world I liked him at all. I suppose he was like this older brother to me, this hero, someone who I could always count on."

Antoine's mind flits to Sally Acorn.

"But the day he found out I liked him, all that ended. He just tossed me away, like I was nothing. The image of Sonic that I looked up to, well, it shattered into one thousand little pieces. I don't even know how to feel about him anymore."

Yes, Antoine is thinking of lovely Sally Acorn. Beautiful, sweet and inaccessible princess Sally Acorn, whose only engagement was to the city, whose love was not earthly but political.

"When I got with Ari, we'd always hang out. We spent so much time together, dammit. I thought that it had to be love, right? But no. He never understood me. Turns out, we were just fucking."

"Ah." Antoine shifts on the bench, weight on one butt cheek shifted to the other.

"I guess that some people are just... meant to be lonely." There is a tone of resentment in Tails' voice as he says this.

Antoine nods, again. His body is tense, as he suppresses the start of a shiver. The cold and dark are starting to get to him.

"I guess you're happy with Bunnie."

"Oui, most very much."

Tails smiles back, a strangely wistful smile.

"You talk about her a lot," the fox says.

"Oui."

"You know, Bunnie and I used to be the closest of friends. And now that she's with you, I barely even see her anymore."

Silence. He sees little in the thickness of the dark. But the coyote feels it, feels Tails' gaze pierce straight through the darkness, and into his being.

"Or you, Ant... for that matter."

Uttered, like some accusation. Antoine shifts, once again, on the park bench. It's as though the heat of his ass is being sucked away, bit by bit, by the rusty metal slats.

Beside him, Tails also shifts. And then, Antoine feels it. A knee, bumping against his own.

"Hey Ant, thanks for being here."

"Not a problème."

The knee is still there, against his knee.

"I mean, you could've spent the night with Bunnie."

Yes, Bunnie. His beautiful, pretty, and adorable Bunnie.

"Eez… okay. She eez… habituated to when I eez away."

Is it just Antoine's imagination, or has Tails leaned in closer?

"You know, Ant... Sometimes, it really is hard." Tails sighs, the kind of effortful sigh that rises heavily from tired lungs. Antoine feels it: the blow of this last exhalation, still warm as it crosses the cold distance and reaches the fur on his neck.

"I believe..." Antoine draws in a deep breath, readying himself. "Eet will all be all right someday. Now, eet eez difficult. But eet will be all right."

"Thanks, Ant."

There is a swish of twin tails, both of which, coincidentally, brush against the small of his back. The coyote takes note that Tails' knee is still pressed against his own. Once cold, the fur has warmed with the contact. The heat contrasts with the coldness all around him. Suddenly, Antoine thinks of home, and the warmth provided by Bunnie's body, inside of which he suddenly wished to be buried.

"Eez late. Shall we be now going soon?"

"...I guess." Tails' voice has gone flat, lifeless.

The silence descends once more; an ugly silence that makes Antoine's fur crawl.

Antoine does not know what to do. He hadn't known what to do, either, when he had first received his friend's desperate call just before the sun had set. He gets the eerie feeling that he has not performed his function, that he is on a mission he is about to fail, should he make the wrong move.

Slowly, awkwardly, the coyote places his arm over his friend's shoulder.

"Eez... eez will be okay," he whispers.

To his surprise, Tails leans in.

The smaller body presses against his own. And now they are side to side, Tails' shoulder snug against his underarm, back of the orange-furred head rested against his shoulder.

Tails sighs. It is a different sigh.

"Sometimes, I wonder if I'm a selfish person."

A new intonation has slipped inside the fox's voice, something almost akin to slyness. Or was that just Antoine's impression?

"Ant..."

The coyote holds his breath.

"...Do you ever wonder how things would be if... they were different?"

The statement, in all its vagueness, is uttered with such conviction that Antoine could not help but answer:

"Yes."

Suddenly Antoine sees and feels himself not beside Tails, not even Bunnie, but instead with Sally. Sweetly smiling, radiant princess Sally Acorn. The heat of the body huddling so closely no longer belongs to Tails, but to Sally! From the pit of his stomach rises an abrupt, sharp pang.

"Antoine...!"

The call of his name jolts him back into reality. "Pardonne-moi. What you say?"

"I said... it's nice to be here with you, Antoine."

Tails' cheek is now comfortably snuggled against the coyote's shoulder, muzzle leaning into collarbone. Antoine can smell, faintly, the scent of Tails' breath.

"Of course, mon ami. It eez what friends are here for, non?"

The coyote takes note of the warm weight of this other creature, now so close against him. Tails is supple, small and organic. Two tails begin to wag, bumping gently and deliberately along his lower back.

Tails is not crying anymore. He hasn't been for some time now.

Antoine says nothing. A small hand has placed itself on his thigh. The hand becomes a wrist, forearm and elbow. The coyote's body makes no move of its own, either to encourage or resist. But to stay like this is to accept.

Stay he does.

The smaller muzzle begins to push up his neck. The rhythm is slow, deliberate. Antoine does not feel cold anymore, not at all.

Tails' nose is moist. From the crying? It is refreshingly cool against the edge of Antoine's lips as it bumps, just once. And now, their muzzles are sliding against one another. The texture of soft fur hints at hard teeth beneath.

Tails stops. His jaw opens just a crack. From this angle, Antoine can't see, but the fox's lips have been stretched to a smile.

"Please stay," Tails begs.

Antoine is surprised by his own answer, whispered as his friend's tongue melts into his.

"Yes."


	2. Antoine

Antoine waits on Tails' bed.

Why did he do it? What made him say yes? Antoine doesn't know. Just last week, he had filled Bunnie's arms with impromptu roses, whispering that he loved her over and over as she lay in his arms. And just yesterday, they had leaned against each other by the balcony, watching the sun dip between the hills.

Tails is still in the toilet. There's the long, persistent sound of liquid dripping into liquid. The apartment is so tiny, Antoine can hear everything.

Antoine tries to think of other things. Bodily functions annoy him. Once, Bunnie's mechanical parts had simply decided to fail her. They called the ambulance, and she eventually had to have the neural wiring fixed again at a specialized facility. But for the time in between, she was completely dependent. Once in a while, when the orderly couldn't get to her room on time, Antoine had to help her to the bathroom. He had to stay and watch as she did it, both number one and two. It was horrific, seeing her frail body in such a dependent state. Still today, he winces at the memory.

The sound of urine falling into a toilet bowl ceases, replaced by the gushing of the sink tap. At last, Tails pops back out. On his face is a shy blush.

"Sorry for taking so long…"

"No problème."

As Tails sits down by his side, the mattress caves in just so slightly. It makes Antoine's body lean right into Tails'. Both of them have long since removed their clothes.

"I dunno. I've just had some… bathroom problems recently."

"Hn." Antoine is finding the most comfortable way to slide his arms around the fox's waist.

"It always feels like I can't empty my bladder."

Antoine replies by pressing his muzzle against Tails' neck, breathing in deeply, trying to blot out Tails' words.

"I mean, I've had problems for a while, but these weeks, it's gotten pretty bad…"

Antoine lets his tongue slide out from his lips and up the fox's neck. Tails' body is warm as he holds it close. The fox's face is now reddened by a full-blown flush.

"Ah… Ant!"

The coyote gives a gentle push, and the two of them fall upon the bed. The supple body beneath him is surprisingly light, twisting seductively under the pressure of his touch. It's so different from being with Bunnie. He always had to be so careful with those steel parts, and move them out of the way at the right angle. Under the light, he only now realises how small and bony Tails is. Had the fox always been so scrawny? On the other hand, Bunnie put on weight recently. It's almost refreshing to have such a lithe form in his arms.

"Ah… careful! My back hurts!"

Antoine feels warm, furry legs spreading beneath him. Not metal, but real flesh! It had been a long time since he had done it with anyone but Bunnie. Suddenly, his memories flood to his past conquests. Beautiful young males and females, from a variety of species – it was so good to let loose again, and re-connect with his wildest desires.

It's strange how detached he feels. His fiancée is back home, waiting. But there's no shame, no fear, no doubt. All he wants is the little warm creature before him.

They kiss and kiss, eating each other's mouths out until they're both panting. Tails then giggles as Antoine pries open his legs. It suddenly strikes Antoine, how naturally the thighs connect to the pelvic floor. Every part of it is organic, intact, flowing with supple motion. Antoine is struck by a new yearning, one that he hadn't felt for a long time.

"Ohh, Ant…" his illicit lover groans.

"You eez naughty…" the coyote teases. He runs a finger lightly around the rim of the fox's little hole, and it makes the twin tails quiver. He takes a good look at the sphincter, firm and yielding beneath his fingertip. It's somewhere that Bunnie would never have let him go.

"Don't tease me," Tails gasps. "Please, Ant, more!"

"Oui… ask me again," he says seductively while squeezing a firm little ass cheek.

"More, oh, yes, more!"

Antoine tears open a sachet of lubricant. He circles the tight little rim one last time, spreading the warming gel all around. The fox gyrates his pelvis, granting him easy access. At last, he pushes in with the finger.

"Yesssssss," Tails growls.

"You like dis," the coyote coos.

"Yes! Ohhhhhhh, yes!"

He starts to thrust with the finger, feeling the tightness of the sphincter and the hotness of the caverns inside, gripping onto him from all sides. Yes, he can almost imagine how delectable it would be to push himself into the fox with… something else. Tails gives a moan as he pushes in a second finger. Both fingers now in place, he begins to caress the insides with expertise, rolling around and around the tight little hole, and –

Suddenly, he stops what he's doing. Something uncanny has caught his attention.

"Antoine?" Tails whimpers disappointedly.

Antoine repeats the motion, rolling his fingers around the walls of the fox's tight cavern a second time, then a third until there remained no doubt as to what was there.

"Parbleu! Zere eez big masse!"

Upon pronouncing these words, Antoine promptly faints, fingers sliding limply out of his lover's ass as his body rolls off the bed and hits the carpet.

"Antoine? ANTOINE!"

The blood drains entirely from Tails' cheeks and once-excited member. His body and mind have frozen with shock. It was as though the sky had fallen, and time had stopped. His heart began to pound, madly so. Above, the ceiling begins to swerve.

His head is so light, he feels like he is floating. But he has to do what must be done. Wincing, Tails slides a cautious finger back in. Rolling the finger back and forth like Antoine had, he finds it. The boundaries of the mass take shape, a huge hard lump where his male G-spot should be. Tails is no medical student, but he knows at once that something is horribly, horribly wrong.

Slowly, his hand reaches for the telephone on the bedside stand. It's as though his mind has dissociated itself from his body. He dials up the ambulance, one shaking number at a time.

When Antoine comes to, Tails is in the midst of the call.

"I… must now be leaving," the coyote mumbles.

Tails is still on the line with the operator, reciting his address word after mechanical word. His eyes dart to Antoine, and for a moment, their gazes meet. There, the coyote finds the purest expression of terror that he has ever witnessed.

Ashamed of himself, Antoine crawls up from the carpet, slides back into his outfit, and stumbles out the door. Out in the streets, he breaks into a wild, headless run.


	3. Bunnie

"You're distracted, honey pie."

It's not an accusation. Just a statement. They're in the same bed: Antoine on one side, Bunnie on the other. Their bodies, one organic and one half-robotic, do not touch.

"I suppose, ma belle."

There's a pause. A sharp intake of breath from Bunnie's part. "Have you… Have you heard 'bout poor lil' Tails?"

Antoine freezes up, feels the blood drain away from his head and hands and feet to settle in the pit of his stomach.

"Non, chérie. Wat… are you meaning?"

"Doc said... doc said he got some horrible cancer! Ah don't believe it..."

And she starts to cry. There is an uncomfortable silence as she does so. A metallic hand goes up, wiping at the gruesome mess of lachrymal and nasal fluid.

"It eez difficult, yes," Antoine replies slowly.

"He got this big surgery soon... they gonna cut him up at the hospital... .and then they gonna put chemicals in him... that chemical therapy thing." she starts to sob. "And seventeen! Just seventeen years old..."

"Hélas. Much... unfortunate." The words are surprisingly empty, hollow in his throat.

"He's mah friend, Ant! Tails is mah friend and I don't recon what to do anymore! "

Suddenly, Antoine wishes that he was back in Eurish, far far away from Mobius.

He turns over on the bed, away from her. He feels sick inside, and can't tell why. Vaguely, a memory emerges from the back of his mind. The proposal! Hadn't he wanted to propose to her? And yet, the thought is dull, dead, apathetic. Antoine allows it to slide out of his consciousness, as joylessly as it had come in.

"Ah… ah need space, darlin'. Ah need some space to figure this out."

Antoine doesn't know what he wants anymore. So he stays there on the bed, staring into the ceiling as the sound of labored, metallic footsteps fade away into the distance.

* * *

Bunnie watched her friend deteriorate.

A disease, habitually reserved for the old, had struck Miles Prower in the prime of his youth.

The medical report revealed the follows: a genetic defect, deep-seated within the fox's very DNA, had predisposed him to tumorous growths at an early age. In other words, each living cell in his body had been a ticking time bomb, waiting to become cancer.

It just so happened that the first to set off did so within the walnut-sized gland known as the prostate.

From there, the mass had grown, and through the bloodstream, it disseminated. Into the liver, the lungs, even the bones, the cancer travelled and implanted itself, like dandelion seeds in the wind. At such an advanced stage, treatment would, at best, buy time.

Perhaps the first inkling that could have pinpointed to this intrinsic defect was in the fox's malformed twin tails, for which he had been so well-known. One could perceive this fact as some clever turn of irony by some higher power. But fate is neither clever nor ironic. It is mindless and haphazard. The vulpine was cursed not for some greater reason, not even to appease the whims of a cruel superior being.

He just was.

Among all of his friends, Bunnie was the only one who stayed. She stood by him through those last painful months, when the morphine dripping into his veins could only partially numb the pain rankling in his frail and disintegrating body. The progression had been rapid, the cancer merciless. She remained by his bedside, even sleeping in the hospital, until the end: the most faithful companion of all.

Among the emotional whirlwind following Miles' diagnosis, Bunnie and Antoine grew further apart. Eventually, their relationship came to an end. It was either Antoine or Tails, and Bunnie chose Tails.

It hurt. Every moment of it. Bunnie had once defeated death herself, only to now lose Tails.

But she did all that could have been done. She stayed.

She never heard back from Antoine.

* * *

Clenching her fists, willpower holding back a river of tears like a last frail dam, Bunny Rabbot looks on. The casket has already been lowered into the ground. All of it feels entirely surreal. Around her, a handful of spectators stand on: Sonic and Amy, Knuckles and Blaze, Silver, even Rotor off to the side.

Nobody else.

Dirt is piled on the casket; soon, no more trace of Miles Prower shall remain above the ground. Bunnie looks on, because it's the only thing left to do.

 _People are such cowards_ , she thinks. A tear falls, then another. She stops resisting altogether, and grief flows out of her like a waterfall. Hot, salty fluid wets the fur on her left paw, the organic one. A tear or two splashes onto her right paw, the metallic one. Off they roll from the metal surface, before disappearing into the dry ground.

 _What cowards, every single one of them..._


End file.
